Tom McCarthy, Phillies Broadcaster, Talks Playoffs, His Work in the Booth, and The Season Without Harry

Tom McCarthy, Phillies play-by-play man, joins the show to talk about the playoffs and recap his year in the booth.

After a few games as the middle-inning guy and ‘man around the stadium’ filing reports -- a role he held last year as well -- McCarthy was thrust into nine-inning duty after the untimely passing of Harry Kalas.

We talk about Tom’s year in the booth as the lead play-by-play guy for the World Champions, and while McCarthy is obviously excited to have this opportunity, he is quick to point out that it’s a job he didn’t want.

Well, eventually he wanted it, and he explains that he came back from doing radio for the Mets for this exact opportunity -- he just thought it would come in 5-6 years when Harry retired. Nobody was ready for Harry’s passing, both emotionally and logistically for the announce crew, especially the way it happened. But there Tom was, less than two hours later, having to tell the Delaware Valley that a member of their family had just died. Then he had to call a baseball game.

We talk pretty candidly about that game, and McCarthy explains that he couldn’t let his emotions get the better of him. He had prepared a written tribute to Harry as the stand up before the game, but scrapped it because he didn’t think it was perfect enough. He explains that he ended up speaking a bit more from the heart and didn’t let his emotions about Harry’s passing get to him until later that night. Watching the game that

day, you could see how hard it was for him, but I can say that he, Chris Wheeler and Gary Matthews handled it as well as you could hope.

We also talk about how different Tom’s call of the game is from Harry’s. How has the reaction in the city been to taking over for the legend? Has he felt any negativity and ‘you’re not Harry’ resentment? Did the legacy of Harry, and the pressure of following such a revered man in these circumstances, affect the way he calls the game?

We talk a little bit about Sarge and Wheels, and how working with a former player differs from working with a guy who never played the game at a high level. Does he find himself asking them different questions? Does he look at Wheels sometimes and wonder, ‘how do you know that -- you’ve never played the game?’ Because, parenthetically, I do that every game I watch. We also talk about the decision to keep Scott Franzke and Larry Anderson exclusively on radio after Harry passed, and what their relationship as an announce crew has been like this year.

We discuss the difference between doing radio and TV. Tom explains that radio is so different because it’s you and the color guy. And on radio, the play-by-play guy is vital to paint the picture for the listener. But on TV, the picture is painted by the cameramen and the directors, so Tom

feels its important to let the color analyst have more time to explain (even with replays and other visuals you can’t have on radio, the color guy gets more time). I ask if he’s felt different calling the game on TV, as I noticed he sometimes reacts to the pictures we’re seeing on the screen. Is it hard to balance watching the game on the field with watching on the monitor? How aware of what we’re seeing is he, and does he have to be, to do the call? He sees his role as a compliment to the visuals, but stresses that he calls the game -- pitches, hits, outs, runs -- on the field, using the telecast’s views of fans and ballpark scenes to help tell the story.

We talk about the Phillies chances this postseason. With all the ups and downs, including a lackluster and somewhat untrustworthy bullpen, this team ended up with more wins than last year’s World Champions. Is this

a better team on paper? The lineup is better, the bench is better, the rotation is better. But the bullpen is not.

And while the rotation has struggled down the stretch, we discuss if not having every game matter this year may have changed their outlook in September a little bit. Is it different for a team that knows they’re going to to playoffs? Tom explains that he never had a doubt the Phils would win the division, even while others in the organization (he doesn’t name) were getting nervous. He was with the Mets the year they collapsed in 2007 and he explains that he never thought this Phillies team would do that because they’re made up of ‘different stuff’ than that Mets squad. Win or lose, he explains that this Phillies team is full of good guys -- guys you want to root for.

Which leads to a conversation about Miguel Cabrera. What would happen to a guy like that in Phlly? And could he see anyone on this current team doing that to his teammates? The city? Would the other guys on the team let that happen?

Last, we talk about his role for the playoffs. He said he will be doing some radio, including the pre and post game stuff when Jim Jackson is with the Flyers. The plan is to have him call a few innings on radio, but he was quick to make clear that he doesn’t want to step on the toes of Franzke and Anderson, who do a wonderful job on the broadcast. Harry got to step in for Franzke last year when the Phillies won it all. This year, from what it sounds, if the Phillies make it back to the Series, Franzke gets the call.

So, are we going to have another parade? Let’s get through today first.

Thanks for listening.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

The link above is the entire show. At the bottom, or by clicking the header, you can link to subscribe to the show.

Buy the new On the DL merchandise for 2009! While supplies last (which means forever).